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Who Was Your Boy Band Crush? (You Know You Had One!)

Admit it. You had one. You had a boy band crush once. While I never got into New Kids on the Block when I was actually the right age, I loved 'N Sync when I was in college (especially their song, "Bye, Bye, Bye"). I thought JC Chasez had the best voice. And—yes, I'll go public with it—my friends and I went to see 'N Sync perform at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena. We were 22 years old, but we didn't care!

Boy bands, whether you like it or not, have had their place in society. (My theory for their raging popularity, despite mediocre looks? Girls get semi-brainwashed with lyrics like, "I want to be your boyfriend and buy you tons of flowers." They hear these words while visualizing actual cute boys they know (who would never say those things), and somehow they confuse the two personas. Plus, who doesn't love the way you feel when you're daydreaming about your crush and imagining him saying what Joey Fatone is singing? That's why okay-looking boy band members have girls passing out at concerts.)

All this to say, I’m still reeling from the news that LFO singer Rich Cronin has passed away from a stroke, related to his battle with leukemia. Remember the 90s hit, “Summer Girls”? I owned the single! Who could resist Rich Cronin's blonde hair and silly lyrics?

Rich Cronin was only 35 when he died on Wednesday—just a few years older than me! Really makes you think.

Remember when he signed up for Match.com? In 2008, he told the Boston Herald that he didn’t go out any more and, since he was no longer in a band, he wasn’t meeting girls. Admitting to dating online was revolutionary, even in 2008. Especially coming from a microcelebrity, that was ballsy to admit (not that he could care—he was already sick by then and probably had more perspective).

Anyway, these young deaths always shake me a little. Life is so short! Must. Find. Love.

Okay! Let's lighten things up: tell me who your boy band crush was. Then listen to “Summer Girls” today and go out and live life to the fullest!